


From the Shadows

by Dusklatte



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: CONVENIENT XANDER APPEARANCE IS CONVENIENT, Dancing, Developing Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Future Angst, Irritated Iago featuring Niles, Low-key rivalry between Jakob and Niles, Pining, Rivalry, and corrin pining for niles but she doesn't know it's him, dance lessons, did I mention fluff? I hope that this ends up very fluffy-, future pining, or: niles pining for corrin, surprise kisses
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-23
Updated: 2019-05-12
Packaged: 2019-08-28 04:37:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 7,420
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16716715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dusklatte/pseuds/Dusklatte
Summary: There are many times through Niles' life that he remembers being there for Princess Corrin, and helping her out in a variety of little ways which meant a lot to her. There is just one thing -  he has always kept himself in the shadows, and never allowed her to discover it was him.





	1. The First Steps

**Author's Note:**

> Hi!
> 
> This is my first time in posting a story on here in a couple of years... It feels so long-! i hope that people enjoy this first chapter!

He could remember the first time he had ever seen her... She was about fifteen years old. Only recently he had been told to be the retainer of Prince Leo of Nohr, rather than be executed for his crimes. Not that he minded... Life was interesting, getting to travel around with his liege who was at a conveniently awkward age for teasing.

But... He wasn't quite expecting to visit somebody, who was essentially a hidden royal... There had been talk of a mysterious princess called 'Corrin' throughout Nohr, but he never realised that she was actually _real._

He wasn't actually permitted to talk to her – the retainers were rather restricted in terms of movement in the Northern Fortress – but he saw her at a distance as she was smothered by Princess Camilla in a hug. She looked so different to her siblings... Whilst their hair was either blonde or purple, hers was so pale, similar to his own hair. Her eyes were a shocking red, and what made her even more interesting was her little pointed ears.

Her smile was so bright and innocent, and the curiosity in her eyes was quite the thrill. Niles could figure out rather quickly that she hadn't been allowed to leave the fortress.

_Maybe that was why she seemed so excited when Princess Elise had gifted her with a simple flower._

He couldn't see her again until that evening. The other retainers were busy with their own lieges, whilst Leo had hidden himself away in the library. He was free to explore... Or at least explore without getting caught by the staff here – Gunter was simply scary, the butler had a death-glare, and the blue-haired maid apparently had ice powers. The pink-haired maid was less of a worry... she would be too clumsy to even notice him.

It didn't take long for him to locate Corrin's room, she had left the door slightly opened, and he could see her prancing about in here.

“Right.. Maybe I can keep practicing, then big brother will be _really_ surprised the next time he tutors me with dancing! Um... is there anything I can use to practice with though?” Niles continued peering through the gap in the door as Corrin eventually pulled out what appeared to be some sort of mannequin. “Hmm... This should do! I don't have any actual person to practice with after all.”

_Oh, how Niles wanted to step in to help her... But he didn't want to have her tell Leo that 'a man with one eye and white hair helped her with dancing' – he would be more than executed, he would be left at the whim of King Garon himself._

“One, two, three, four...” Corrin carefully took a few steps, before breathing in deeply. “One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four...” She did a few more, and closed her eyes. “One, two, thr- ahh!” A loud clatter echoed through the room and the nearby hallways as the princess fell over, sending the mannequin crashing into the ground. Even Niles couldn't help but wince at that.

But then... He saw a prime opportunity to interact with the princess. What looked like a sash, meant to be tied around the waist of a dress, had fallen off the mannequin during the impact of the fall... And it wasn't in her line of sight. So, silently, he slipped into the room and closed the door. The delicate silk of the sash didn't feel right in his hands, but he didn't care... He _just_ needed to cover the princess' eyes so that she wouldn't know it was him, and couldn't tell Leo.

Fortunately, he was able to do just that, much to her surprise.

“Wh- Who is there...? Why have you-!” Niles crouched down in front of the now blindfolded princess, before pressing one of his fingers against her lips.

“Now now, Lady Corrin... There's no need to fluster yourself, I'm not going to hurt you... I've been watching you for a while now. You're trying to dance to impress Prince Xander? Honestly, you're terrible at it. Let me show you...” She bit her lip – _oh how that made him drool –_ before her hands went up to remove the sash. His hands intercepted hers, before he tutted. “No, princess... Sometimes, you learn better through doing, not seeing.”

There was a clear reluctance in her face, before she slowly nodded. “F-Fine...” She then allowed him to pull her up to her feet, before he smirked as he kept hold of one of her hands, and placed his other on her waist. She was so _small_ compared to him, but the way in which she held onto him felt natural. “Um, what's your name...?”

“That, Lady Corrin, is for you to find out _after_ we've practiced... Understand?”

Steadily, Niles guided Corrin through the dance steps he had recalled all of the other Nohrian royals doing, and he couldn't help but notice her becoming much more confident as time passed. There was a point where she had started giggling as she took control of the dance, and _wow,_ Niles couldn't quite believe how quick this girl learned.

However... he knew that he couldn't remain with the princess for long. There was apparently a time where the retainers were meant to gather, and there was no doubt that they would realise that they were one short.

“Oh princess, you appear to be getting a solid grasp of this dance now... Why don't you see if you can do it without my guidance this time?”

“Really? Okay then...” Corrin then took a deep breath, and began to direct her feet across the floor in the way in which she had been taught. She looked so delicate but elegant at the same time... But he couldn't remain there any longer.

As silently as he arrived, he left the room, and closed the door behind him.

He never got to see her reaction when she realised that she was alone once more.

The next time he saw the princess was the next morning. Once more, she was smothered in a hug by Camilla, though as a farewell, rather than a greeting.

They were leaving the fortress, not to return for another month or two.

 


	2. Frozen Fortress

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that compared to some, my chapters are slightly short... I will be aiming to improve the length of chapters as the story goes on!

Ever since that day when she was fifteen, Corrin had remembered the mystery man who had helped her with her dancing. Xander had been impressed the next time that he visited the fortress, and had joked that she had been getting secret lessons...

_How much she wanted to let him know what had happened that night... But she couldn't say a word – her father had forbidden her from having guests aside from her siblings._

As time went on, her memories of that evening grew hazier and hazier, but there were little things which she would always remember. The rough texture of the man's hands, his cold breath against her ear and neck, plus the slightly smug tone of his voice... It got to a point where she would attempt to conjure up a face to those small details.

And she couldn't help but notice those aspects in Jakob and Gunter too.

Jakob acted so smug at times, but his hands were too soft and his breath would be warm thanks to the tea which she would drink with him.

Gunter had rough hands, to be expected of someone who had fought many times before, but his breath wasn't cold, and had more of a stern personality.

Neither of them could be her mysterious visitor... _But if it wasn't them, who was this man?_

 

* * *

* * *

* * *

 

 

The next time that Corrin came across this man, it was mid-winter, and snow had fallen around the Northern Fortress. Corrin and the staff there had been snowed in. Leo was perfectly aware of this, and was frustrated that the visit he and his siblings had scheduled had been cancelled by their father with this as the reasoning.

_It never stopped him from plotting to find out if Corrin was okay though._

“Right... Niles. Before you do as I have asked you, I have just one rule... _Don't_ talk to Corrin; find Gunter, Jakob, or Flora instead.”

“Understood, Lord Leo... Don't talk to the three with sticks up their backsides, find the scatter-brained maid, and chat up Lady Corrin, correct?” Niles smirked, watching as Leo pursed his lips together in frustration. “Ah, don't stress your little royal head off, I promise I won't go near your sister...”

_Lie number one._

Leo stared daggers at his retainer, before there was a loud sigh. “Just... Just go, before I send somebody else instead...”

“Alright... I'll be back as soon as I can, Lord Leo,” Niles winked as he spoke lie number two out loud. “Don't go getting any new retainers whilst I'm gone, I can't _bear_ to have to share you...”

With a loud groan and a rough shove from the prince, Niles found himself outside his liege's quarters, ready to undertake the mission he had been given. _Just... with a few minor alterations. Namely finding a reason to talk to Corrin._

As Niles made his way through the thick forests of Nohr, he frowned as the snow appeared to get more and more deeper. For a country which was known for how dark it was... this snow just didn't feel right in the scenery.

Fortunately though, the snow wasn't too much of a hindrance for him. He was light on his feet, so he just needed to keep moving so that he wouldn't sink into the cold surroundings. Going at that rate, he arrived at the fortress just after nightfall.

_He absolutely terrified Felicia as he appeared at a window, and knocked to get in._

When the maid opened the window, her eyes open extremely wide, she couldn't quite get any words except for “D- Did Prince Leo-?!”

“Yes... Lord Leo sent me here to check if you were all frozen to death or not. Now... Are you going to invite me in? It's late, and I don't want to have to resort to drastic measures...” With a smirk on his face, he entered the room, before winking at Felicia. “Thanks, sweetheart. I'll make sure to tell Lord Leo what a _lovely_ host you are...”

 

* * *

* * *

* * *

 

 

Inside the fortress' library, Corrin was dithering away under a blanket by the fireplace. She had her toes as close to the flames as she could bear, and the book on her lap had gone unread. It was _far_ too cold for her to concentrate on reading.

All that she could really focus on was the flickering of the fire before her, due to it being the only actual light source in the room. A cold draught had been enough to snuff out all of the candle flames, so there was no doubt that the fire probably wouldn't last much longer either.

As she edged forward slightly, Corrin felt another freezing breeze, and the library door slicking shut. With a sigh, she shivered once more... And then felt a pair of hands covering her eyes.

“Guess who, Lady Corrin?”

_She remembered those hands... That voice, and that cold breath..._

“Mysterious dancing tutor...?” Corrin attempted to turn back, but was stopped before she could see beyond his hands.

Niles laughed, and leaned in towards her ear. “Hmm... Close enough. But I am so glad to see you are not completely frozen yet... Perhaps this is my chance to warm you up?”

 


	3. A rival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Following checking up on the Northern Fortress, Niles finds out that Jakob _really_ doesn't want him to find a way into the princess' affections.

“You. Thief, retainer, whatever you are. I need to have a _word_ with you.” As Niles was preparing to leave the Northern Fortress the morning after he had arrived, he found a foul-faced Jakob waiting at the entrance waiting for him. “I know that you were sent by Lord Leo to check to make sure things are running well here because of the bad weather, but that gives you _no_ excuse to go anywhere near Lady Corrin... Do you understand? _Don't_ go near her again.”

Niles could definitely pick up the frustration in the butler's voice – oh, how he could tease the man. “Who says that I went near the princess? Prince Leo provided me with strict instructions to _not_ go near her... Ah, are you trying to scare anyway anyone who would dare take her away from you? Tut tut, _butler..._ A member of royalty with a member of staff?”

Horror filled Jakob's face at Niles' words, and it hardly took a second for a dagger to be whipped out and pointed at his throat. “Do _not_ try to play with me... I _will_ tell your liege what you have been doing... Sneaking around at night, and approaching the princess when she is spending time in the library!”

“And how would you be aware of anything happening, _unless_ you were snooping in on the poor princess... Lord Xander would have your head if he heard about that...”

Jakob grew even more agitated at Niles, before reluctantly stepping aside. “ _Fine..._ Tell Lord Leo that _everything_ is _fine,_ as is _Corrin.”_

“Alright, Jakob... Have a nice day, and look after the princess...”

“ _I will, it's my job._ Now get out before I request that Gunter _escorts_ you out.”

Once Niles had left the fortress, Jakob made sure that the main door was locked. He had seen him sneaking around the night before, so he knew that he would have the ability to try and sneak back in just to follow the princess around – _and Jakob would not have that._

_Not. At. All._

As soon as he had finished his locking up, he knew that he would have to check to make sure Corrin wasn't left alone. His first point of call was the kitchens though, as he wanted to make a drink of tea to share with the princess. According to Felicia and Flora, Corrin had been shivering and sneezing that morning as she woke up, so he knew a nice warm drink would be best for her.

“Now... Where is Lady Corrin's favourite tea hidden?” Jakob went to the pantry, and checked in the place where he _knew_ that he had put the tea. Instead, he found an empty shelf... And his eyes narrowed. “ _That good-for-nothing thief...”_

 

 

* * *

* * *

* * *

 

 

As Niles was returning to Windmire to report that things were going fine at the Northern Fortress despite the current weather conditions, he couldn't help but feel slight irritation towards Jakob. All that Niles wanted to do was get to know the hidden-away princess without her getting to properly know him, as that could get him into _serious_ trouble... but Jakob was insistent on being almost _too_ overprotective of the princess, and keeping her even more of a secret to Nohr than she currently was...

_He had a rival for the attention of the princess... Now, that would make his anonymous visits even more exhilarating._

But for now, he could at least have something to remind him of the princess. She had such a nice smell around her the previous night, and she had told him that it was her favourite tea which Jakob would brew. Also, in her words, ' _Jakob does try to hide it so it's a drink which only he can make for me... But he does a really bad job at that. It tastes and smells nice though..._ '

So... Niles had found the tea just before he left, and stashed it away. He obviously would tell Leo that they had ran out of Corrin's favourite tea, but the prince wouldn't know that it had ran out through Niles just wanting to have something which reminds him of her.

_He could imagine the horror on Jakob's face at realising that the tea had gone... And a highly suspicious face at a sudden delivery of more of Corrin's tea._

“Oh, you silly butler... Neither of us shall win her over, so you might as well let me have this little victory...” Niles then began to talk as though Jakob was actually there, before he burst out laughing. “Ah, he's such a fun play-thing... Almost as fun to tease as Lord Leo...!”

 


	4. A face without a name

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's night, and Jakob is out of the way... Prime time for Niles to meet up with Corrin.

Over the months, and on the sporadic visits of the Nohrian royals to visit Corrin, Niles' attempts to get close to the princess were... difficult. Jakob would be looking over at him _constantly,_ and would brandish a dagger if Niles even dared to get too close.

_It didn't stop him when Jakob was asleep... Corrin was thankfully rather nocturnal, unlike that butler._

With his hood over his head, he was stood behind Corrin as they looked at the sky on the fortress' roof. He would tut and turn away at any moment she would even dare try to get a closer look at his concealed facial features.

“You know... You're weird. You don't ever let me see you properly, but you try to help me out... teach me... What is so bad about me seeing your face?” Corrin's question was expected, but Niles still had to take a short moment to think up of a reply.

“Well... You see, princess... I love to tease people... make them suffer...” He approached her, and smirked as he continued. “And that pout on your face as I keep myself hidden... I just want to take that in, and enjoy it...”

Corrin frowned, before gasping as he took hold of her wrists as he stood behind her. “... And what about your name? Why can't I know your name?” She didn't even have to wait for an answer – she knew that he would give the same answer about the pout on her face.

Niles slowly began to rub his thumbs in circles on the backs of her palms as he leaned closer to her. The closeness made Corrin's breath hitch, and she didn't quite understand why. _The only person who would hold her with this sort of intimacy was Camilla, after a long period of absence..._ After a few more moments, she began to feel her stomach fluttering.

_Now, that reminded her of some of the novels she had read in the past on Felicia's recommendations... They were all romance stories, which ended with a-_

Corrin gasped, her face turning bright red. In those books, the people stood close to each other would end up _kissing._ But... Camilla had told her that she should only ever kiss somebody which she loved.

She knew that she _liked_ this man, as he had been so nice to her when they had met, despite being a bit mean at times, but did she _love_ him?

The next few moments were silent, with Niles looking at the princess as she had her eyes closed, trying to figure out what exactly she thought.

She then took a deep breath, finally with an answer in her head.

Niles was caught by surprise at the princess' flexibility when she freed her wrists, and turned herself around to look directly at him. His blue eye instantly locked eyes with her red ones the second that she pushed his hood down.

Corrin was surprised at the eye patch, and slowly reached up to touch it. Niles was still startled at her sudden actions, but was still able to stop her from satiating her curiosity. “No... Don't touch that. Just... What were you thinking, Princess Corrin?”

“I was thinking... That you look as though you've been through a lot... and... you still look like a nice man...” She didn't quite understand what Niles had meant with his question, but was still able to give him an answer which shocked him.

_And then... She surprised him one more time._

“I don't know your name... But thank you for being so kind to me.” She stood on the tips of her toes, and leaned in to press a quick kiss to his cheek. “Now, um... I'm feeling tired. I should go back to my room...” Corrin stepped away, and began to divert her gaze from Niles as he was silently moving his mouth as he tried to speak unsuccessfully.

_That princess was too sweet for her own good... And his fascination surrounding her grew so much more._

_And... He didn't want to leave things as they were right now._

“Princess, wait! Before you go...” He took hold of her wrist again, before using his other hand to take hold of her chin. “I can't let that little thing be our goodbye, especially after you removed my hood despite me not wanting you to... You owe me for that.” He leaned in, and pressed his lips firmly against hers, biting down on her bottom lip when he noticed that she was blushing.

_Oh, he had made a good decision here._

It was just a shame that one of Corrin's siblings had to disturb the moment. For that matter, it was Xander. Niles knew that he would have to make his presence scarce before the crown prince appeared, as whether he was Leo's retainer or not... Niles would be killed if caught near Corrin by Xander.

It hardly took a moment for Niles to break away from Corrin, and make his presence scarce. Corrin, meanwhile, was stood in shock, staring at the space Niles had just been positioned mere moments earlier.

“There you are, little princess... We have been worried sick about you – Gunter went to check upon you, but you weren't in your room... We feared that Hoshidans had infiltrated the fortress, and had taken you as a prisoner!” Xander quickly approached Corrin, and rested his hands on her shoulders. “Corrin, why were you up here? It is cold, and... you have cut your lip. How did you manage that?”

Xander gently wiped the small spot of blood off Corrin's lip – thankfully believing that she had bit her own lip, rather than somebody else – before sighing. “Come on now, you must rest. Remember – we have training once morning arrives, and Leo wishes to watch us as we spar.”

Niles was hidden in the shadows as the crown prince escorted Corrin off the roof of the fortress, a smirk growing on his face as she kept touching her lips until she was out of sight. Once the coast was clear, he stepped out, and sighed.

_So, she had seen his face... But she was not going to get his name so easily._

 


	5. Dreams and Tea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Corrin has been daydreaming a lot, and it was beginning to concern Elise. Jakob knew exactly what that would be behind it...

“Jakob... Do you know if big sister is okay? I was doing her hair before, and she seemed distracted...” Elise had decided to approach the butler as he was in the middle of brewing a drink of tea for his liege, following her exhausting training session with Leo and Xander. “Like... She didn't pay attention when I was telling her about how nice her hair is to mess with, or anything!”

Slowly, Jakob lowered his hand, and stopped pouring water as he tried to think about what Elise had said. He couldn't think of why Corrin would be acting like this, _except..._ A dark scowl formed on his face as his mind went straight to the sneaky retainer of the youngest prince.

“Um, Jakob?” Elise tapped his shoulder, and he snapped out of his thoughts.

“My apologies, Lady Elise... I do not not know what could be on Lady Corrin's mind. Perhaps she is thinking of how she will miss yourself and your other siblings once you all leave the fortress?” When he had finished speaking, his attention returned to the tea – it was almost just how Corrin liked it, after all.

Elise sighed loudly, before sulking when she realised that she wasn't going to be able to get the answers about Corrin being distracted from Jakob.

Once the young princess had left, Jakob let off an exasperated sigh and prepared to take the tea to Corrin – but he knew that he would have to provide the princess with a... warning of sorts. A warning not to speak to mysterious figures, especially if the king himself had forbidden such a thing from happening. That would not just land the princess in trouble if it was discovered, but also prince Leo, the prince's trouble-causing retainer, and all of the staff at the fortress!

It took Jakob a record two minutes to reach Corrin's quarters with the tea he had made, as he was eager to explain to the princess that Niles meant _trouble._

_He never expected to see the princess to be sat upon her bed, attempting to draw something on some paper._

“Lady Corrin, if I may inter-”

“Not now, Jakob... I'm not really in the mood for tea at the moment.” She didn't even move her eyes from the paper as she spoke. “Maybe in about... an hour? When I've finished this! I promise, Jakob...”

Silently, Jakob placed the tray of tea on a table, and approached Corrin to look over her shoulder.

_And she was drawing that dastardly man... Had she actually seen him now?!_

“Ah, Lady Corrin... Who exactly are you drawing?” Jakob winced as he watched her attempt to draw an eye on the piece of paper, before taking a seat beside her. “Dare I say – this looks like a man who would cause nothing but disaster for those around him...”

Corrin squinted for a moment, before giving Jakob a highly confused stare with her eyebrow raised. “Really? I think it looks more like... somebody who would be very kind, and gentle... but also like to be a bit of a mystery and make your stomach feel like butterflies... Um, that is what people say, right? Like your stomach is full of butterflies?” Jakob pretended not to notice the slight rosy tint forming across his liege's cheeks as she remained silent for a moment. “Anyway! I think it looks like a nice person.”

Jakob felt like _gagging_ at the thought of Niles being 'nice' in any way, shape or form. “Have you ever encountered this person before, Lady Corrin? Your drawing has very specific details, and his highness has forbade any sort of contact with people aside from those in the fortress and your siblings.”

Corrin froze at Jakob's words, and frantically shook her head afterwards. “Nope! Just somebody I met in a dream last night. It was weird, and somewhat like the romance novels which were in the library..” Corrin's face was bright red now, and Jakob couldn't take hearing about any more of this. He _knew_ when Corrin was lying to him, after all.

He then stood up, and placed his hand against her forehead. “You appear to be forming a fever, Lady Corrin. I feel I should request your sisters take care of you until your temperature has lowered...” _At least that way, somebody would be keeping an eye on her..._

“Wh- What?! No! No no, I'm fine, Jakob, really-!”

“No, Lady Corrin... I must insist.” With those words, Corrin began to pout, and proceeded to place the paper under her bed. Jakob felt highly satisfied that Corrin had _finally_ stopped drawing Niles.

“Fine...” Corrin then watched as Jakob left the room, and left the tea which he had made behind. She had felt _terrible_ lying to Jakob, but she also felt proud of herself for actually not revealing that she had been drawing the man who had _kissed_ her the night before...

After a few moments, she lay back on her bed, a slight smile on her face, which didn't even fade as Camilla and Elise appeared, trying to make sure that she was okay...

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the Kudos so far!  
> I'd love to know what people think of it so far ❤️


	6. Leaving home

Niles had been rather bored – he had been asked to remain behind at Castle Krakenburg whilst the royal family visited Corrin. Leo had asked for _Odin_ to accompany him. And yes, there were other retainers remaining behind, namely Arthur. Niles avoided him as much as possible, he didn't want to be given his own dose of bad luck, especially with the king being rather on edge and _angry_ recently.

But oh, did Niles wish to leave the castle in order to see the princess...

At least he would know whether she was safe when Leo returned?

Or at least, he would if it weren't for being approached by the weird looking tactician working for Garon. Niles attempted to pretend not to see Iago, but the loud cough for attention made him sigh and turn around. “Oh, what could you be needing? I get that Lord Leo isn't here, but it doesn't mean that I am at your whim...”

As he raised an eyebrow at Iago, it was clear that this wasn't just something... simple which the tactician wanted.

“I don't want anything... But his majesty does. He knows of your past, and of your shady skills, _retainer..._ ” Niles added to his raised eyebrows by folding his arms, and leaning against a pillar. “You have a request from his majesty _himself._ It should be an _honour_ to be receiving such a task!”

“Which is? I don't do just _anything_ for anyone – not even kings and their slimy tacticians. Even Lord Leo would say so...”

It was from that point that Iago realised he would likely have to be blunt with Niles, to get him to listen properly. “His majesty knows of your ability to capture enemies... There is a skirmish going on at the bottomless canyon against Hoshidan troops. Lady Corrin is to be travelling to the castle within the week, and his majesty has requested for Hoshidan prisoners for her to prove her skills against.”

_Hoshidan prisoners needed... Corrin leaving her dark, isolated fortress in order to arrive at the castle..._

“Hmm... I believe you may have persuaded me... But I just have a quick question. Why is Lady Corrin coming here? Isn't she in the Northern Fortress for 'safety'?”

“... His majesty does _not_ like to be kept waiting.”

“ _Fine..._ But if Lord Leo asks where I am-”

“ _Go!”_

With a smirk on his face, and Iago absolutely _fuming_ behind him, Niles proceeded to complete his new task... Oh, he couldn't wait to see Corrin here at the castle upon his return.

 

* * *

* * *

* * *

 

Corrin was beyond excited as she looked through her belongings, seeing if there was anything which she could leave behind, or take with her on her journey to actually _live_ with her siblings. She knew that she couldn't take _everything,_ and also that Gunter and Jakob would definitely make sure any essentials of hers would be brought along.

“Why can't I take everything, this is so... so hard...” She rummaged through her drawers, and looked at little souvenirs which her brothers and sisters had given her through the years. A small snowglobe from Elise, after a trip to Cyrkensia was one of her favourites, but where could she put it, and what could she actually do with it? The scarf from Xander after one of his Ice Tribe visits was much more convenient... But at the same time, she didn't want to pick something from one sibling, and not something from another!

With a sigh, she sat down on her bed, and decided to distract herself from packing her items. She felt much more capable of procrastinating than actually doing what she was meant to.

Corrin could remember the times she had hidden under her blankets with Felicia when she was very young, with a few books and a lit candle. Gunter would always lecture them on fire hazards... yet they would always do it again once he had left.

There was also the times where she would sit by the window with Jakob and Flora, discussing recent events outside the fortress over a cup of tea. It would always be her favourite tea, made by Jakob. Flora would always cool her tea down... a lot. It always looked as though she had managed to get ice cubes in the drink without them melting!

And then... Her eyes drifted over to the old mannequin, which was falling apart and badly shoved into her closet... She remembered the mysterious man, the one who had taught her to dance, kept her company on many occasions... and kissed her. It brought many memories to the forefront of her mind, but also one question: would she ever see him again?

If she were to be leaving the fortress, there could be a chance he would never know where she would be. He might never see her again.

What Corrin never realised was just how emotional she had become over that little fact. She also never noticed Jakob enter the room, in order to retrieve her so that she could leave the fortress alongside her siblings.

“Lady Corrin... I apologise for interfering whilst you appear to be so upset, but we must go now,” he began, before approaching her and noticing that her eyes had began watering up. “Lady Corrin?” He knelt down, and placed a hand gently on her shoulder. It took barely a second for the princess to grab hold of him, and begin to cry into his shoulder.

“J-Jakob... I love my siblings and I can't wait to stay with both them and father, but I don't want to leave here! I, I have too much here to just let go of...”

Silently, the butler embraced the princess, and sighed quietly. “I understand, lady Corrin... I absolutely understand that you would not want to leave the fortress. But don't _cry_ over it... Remember – both Gunter and I shall be at your side no matter what. We will always help you feel as though you are at a place you can call home...”

 


	7. Through the arm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for Corrin to demonstrate her abilities to her family...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the time it's took for this chapter... I've been quite busy with work! I'm in a tiny team with so much to do, I'm exhausted a majority of the time ;n;
> 
> It is a long weekend though, and I have had the chance to rest up... Time to write before I return to work tomorrow!

From the corner of his eyes, Jakob knew. Jakob _knew_ that Niles was in the distance, watching Corrin. Watching as the princess accepted her father’s gift… Watching as she used the gift… Watching as he remained by her side, refusing to let any of the Hoshidan prisoners lay a finger upon her.

Jakob actually felt quite smug.

Now that he would almost constantly be in the same location as that thief, he knew Corrin could be kept safe. He could always direct the princess to anywhere that Niles _wasn’t._

Keeping the princess safe at the present moment, however, ended up at the back of his mind as he watched the thief pull some sort of stupid face in his direction along with some likely-vulgar hand gestures.

Then there was a slight shriek.

“Remain _focussed,_ Jakob! Lady Corrin was just injured by one of the prisoners’ weapons!” Gunter’s voice snapped the butler out of his thoughts. He glanced at Corrin as the older knight attacked the prisoner who had attached her, and noticed that her sleeve was torn with a clean cut across her arm.

As apologetically as he could, Jakob went to heal the princess, so that the final two prisoners could be dealt with… And perhaps also add Niles to the list of people to deal with too.

As this happened, Niles was feeling rather frustrated. How could that silly butler not understand that he was trying to indicate that Corrin was going to get hurt? He couldn’t intervene, so obviously Jakob would have had to. He didn’t _like_ the fact that Corrin had ended up injured because of her butler’s stubbornness, but at the same time… Niles somewhat relished the look on her face as she withstood the pain.

Once Corrin had been healed though, Niles began to pay more attention to the princess again (he was completely done with trying to get Jakob’s attention by this point) and noticed that there were some very particular moves which she was doing to try and avoid attacks from the club-wielding prisoner. She looked almost as though she was dancing… exactly as he had showed her all those years ago.

How sweet – she was showing off for him! Or, she could have been. If she even knew that he was there. Which was unlikely.

After a few more moments, the fighting was done… The prisoners which he had painstakingly gathered from by the border between Hoshido and Nohr had been defeated. Yet… Corrin had let them live.

Niles thought that now… may be the time to make his presence scarce. He could see the king’s temper flaring up, despite being rather far away. If there was one thing he had learned whilst being Leo’s retainer, it was to stay at the complete opposite side of the castle to an angry King Garon.

So, what did Niles do?

He went straight to Corrin’s new quarters. He thought… It would be worth leaving a little gift there for her, for being so sweet and letting those prisoners live. And he knew the _perfect_ gift which would agitate Jakob, but make her overwhelmingly happy.

 

* * *

* * *

* * *

 

“Come on, Jakob! Come and have some! You _did_ organise this, after all!” Jakob’s eye twitched as he turned away from Corrin as she poured herself a cup of her favourite tea. It had been there, in her room when she had returned – Jakob was the only person (that she was aware of) who knew her favourite type of tea, so she instantly assumed that he had been the one to sort out the drink being there for her return.

Little did she know that this was Niles’ gift. He knew that his knowledge of that intimate little secret between the pair would be _just_ enough to tip Jakob over the edge.

“I would, Lady Corrin… but I feel it would be inappropriate, especially after allowing yourself to be-”

“Just have a drink, Jakob! Neither of us expected that attack so it wasn’t your fault!”

Jakob just didn’t want to try it, just in case Niles had spiked it with anything.

Eventually realising that he wasn’t going to sit down with her, Corrin sighed and said that she was going to get some sleep as she felt tired after the earlier fight.

As soon as Jakob had left, she sighed out loud and went over to the balcony of her room. She wanted to clear her mind of what had happened that day, and to forget about the pained look on Jakob’s face after she had been injured… Not to mention getting the argument he and Gunter had after the battle over that injury too.

“Poor Jakob… He’s been through a lot recently… Maybe he needs a break for a day...”

“Yeah, maybe, but he just doesn’t seem to know the definition of ‘rest’. You know he’d just follow you around the castle, keeping you far, far away from all of the predators who would want to go after a pretty little princess like yourself...”

Corrin was frightened to death when she heard the response to what she had said, before turning around and noticing that the mystery man from the fortress was sat there, on the roof just above her room. _Had he followed her?!_

“H- How did you...”

“I don’t know, maybe I just woke up here one day...”

“S- Stop joking around! You- You were at the fortress, and now you’re here!”

Niles couldn’t help but laugh at the panic on Corrin’s face – maybe she thought he was a stalker. Maybe he _was_ a stalker. “I’m surprised you haven’t figured it out, princess… I just so happen to have some very close ties to your family. Oh, and that butler of yours too… He _loves_ it when I’m around.”


	8. Death mission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Niles is feeling petty, but the feelings change quite quickly when Odin comes with some news.

“Geez, you could at least go somewhere else to put your feet up… That’s the table we have to _eat_ at!”

“You could go somewhere else to eat. This is where I’m resting my feet. I’ve been _very_ busy helping out my liege… What have you been doing recently, hmm?”

“For your information, I have been extremely busy helping Lady Camilla with her missions! And this table is for _all_ of us retainers to sit at, not just you!”

“Well, there is always the _other_ side of the table...”

A smirk of triumph was plastered across Niles’ face as he was scowled at by Selena, simply because he had sat at her preferred place at the table. It was petty, yes… But he was feeling in a petty mood. He had a fun morning of taunting Jakob from afar as he was helping Corrin prepare for her first mission since moving into the castle. He also wanted to entertain himself before he would inevitably be dragged out once more by Leo for yet another menial task set by the king.

Of course, he knew that Selena would be an easy target for his taunting, but at the same time, he knew that he had to be careful… One wrong move, and he could easily enough get himself on the wrong side of Camilla, but also Odin. And… Well, Leo wouldn’t appreciate his weird enough retainers having tension between them…

After a few moments chuckling to himself, he made eye-contact with Selena, who was giving him evil glances from the corner of her eyes. “So, how is that… brown soup?”

Selena scoffed, and dropped the spoon which was in her hand. “It’s _stew._ And it’s nice. Unlike you...”

“Now, how would _you,_ of anyone, know what I taste like?”

“ _Gross!”_

It didn’t take long after that for Niles to find himself alone at the table. It was a shame really, Selena was very fun to tease… More fun than any other retainer (aside from Jakob). That did, however, give him a moment to relax before he had to do anything productive.

Little did he know that a moment of rest would turn into a few-hour long nap, which would be abruptly stopped by a sudden impact against the table, making him accidentally tip his chair backwards as he attempted to figure out what had happened.

“Hell… What was that for?” He rubbed his back slightly as he used the table to pull himself up off the floor, and noticed a frantic Odin staring at him. “Great… don’t tell me that Lord Leo has been sent on a mission which means inevitable death, and we are going to have to save him?”

Odin frowned, clearly not in his typically theatrical state as he tossed over a bow which was in his hands. “No, not Lord Leo...” Niles’ eye narrowed, knowing that his response meant that it wasn’t Leo, but somebody else instead. Probably Princess Elise and her retainers stuck in some sort of odd situation. “It’s Princess Corrin. She was, um… How do I put it… Sent to scout out an abandoned fortress which isn’t _exactly_ abandoned.”

_Much worse than Niles was expecting._

_And if he remembered correctly… Corrin had only taken three people with her. Jakob, Gunter, and… Hans. Definitely a death mission. Barely anyone returned alive after a mission with Hans._

 

* * *

* * *

* * *

 

 

“Blasted darkness… I can’t find them now...” By the edge of the bottomless canyon, Jakob was feeling rather annoyed at the fact that he had been separated from Corrin and Gunter. Following the support of the Corrin’s siblings during the Hoshidan ambush, and being told to fall back and return to the castle, his allies had been a bit too hasty at getting away from the situation. Likely down to the fact that it was Corrin’s first experience with real-life combat.

However… he wasn’t quite expecting to suddenly find himself in an ambush shortly after ending up alone.

“The final one… Once you’re finished, my job here will be done!” Jakob barely had a moment to react when he felt an axe cut through the air beside him. “Die!” He turned around, and was quite horrified when he realised that it was Hans, with what appeared to be bloodlust in his eyes.

Swiftly, Jakob moved to the side and grabbed hold of one of the knives he had with him, realising that he was _not_ talking about any hidden Hoshidans dying. “Of any time to not have that old man here...”

Almost non-stop for at least ten minutes, Jakob was having to avoid being struck by Hans’ axe, whilst barely making a scratch in return. He was put off at moments when he could hear Hans mumbling about a ‘freak’, and ‘falling’, but it thankfully didn’t take long for him to recover after them.

_It was only when he heard Corrin being addressed as this ‘freak’ that Jakob felt his entire body freeze up._

“Hah! What’s the matter? Upset that I called your liege a ‘freak’? Too bad!” It was at that moment Jakob felt a sudden impact against his arm, followed by a sharp pain. The axe had finally hit.

The next few moments were even worse for Jakob, as he felt similar pains again in his leg, sending him down to the ground.

But… that’s when everything stopped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I started writing this and then I got distracted as I picked up Fire Emblem Awakening again... I'm considering doing some writing for that, but I don't know if I will (yet!).


End file.
